Clippers' Matt Barnes won't play against Orlando because of injury

Matt Barnes

Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times

Clippers small forward Matt Barnes is expected to miss Wednesday's game against the Orlando Magic and potentially Thursday's matchup against the Miami Heat because of a bruised right thigh, according to Coach Doc Rivers.

Clippers small forward Matt Barnes is expected to miss Wednesday's game against the Orlando Magic and potentially Thursday's matchup against the Miami Heat because of a bruised right thigh, according to Coach Doc Rivers. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Rivers said not having Barnes, the seventh-man on the team, “is a tough one” for the Clippers because they lose depth behind starting small forward Jared Dudley.

Rivers said if the Magic plays a small lineup he’ll use 6-foot-3 guard Willie Green in place of Barnes. But if the Magic plays big, Rivers said, he’ll use rookie small forward Reggie Bullock, who is 6-foot-7.

“So that’s a tough one,” Rivers said. “Each night, the next two nights, that’ll be with more who [the Magic and Heat] have on the floor than who we want to play.”

Barnes dealt with a bruised left calf during training camp, limiting the 6-foot-7 small forward to just one exhibition.